Review my plan - First attempt

Hello,
I have only recently come around to the idea of an indoor grow due to lack of availability, high prices and wondering around dark streets on a too regular basis. I have had friends who have grown and I have picked up certain things from all of them but had never taken any real interest, as I have decided to do it for the last few days I have been in full on research mode. A lot of what I take as good advice tends to be general consensus. I have and have had other interests over the years that have intricate levels of detail and their own problems like growing and have spent time researching them and the one thing they all have in common is you tend to find even the highest rated products have naysayers and you can always find negative opinions on everything. So I go with the general consensus and as such please forgive any glaring errors I have made, I did my best but there are so many options and variations all with their own merits and negatives. Some areas I am still looking into but am on a slight deadline due to my first holiday in years at the end of March (What a wonderful time to change my mind on the subject!).

I already have 6 Autoflower Feminised seeds bought from Gorilla seeds. Exceptionally fast delivery although....my friend had purchased from them before a few months ago and ordered two kinds. He received a call shortly after and was told one was not in stock but he could get a deal on some Auto AK's, he took the deal as he was impatient and couldn't wait a week but warned me I may receive something similar. I did and and was told the Northern Lights were not in stock and I would have to wait until mid/end of next week till they were shipped or I could have a deal on some AK's. I said I would wait as I hadn't ordered anything and have a few weeks wiggle room. Strangely, they dispatched the next day (yesterday) and were here this morning!

3 Northern Lights from Vision - Beginner friendly! And may actually see the Northern lights in March!
3 West Coast OG from FastBuds - Friends recommendation. I have a high tolerance and these have high THC!

I am going to start with 5 and in case one doesn't germinate I have a spare. Yet to decide on the combo.

I have been in contact with a store and have asked for a final price on the following kit (still waiting to hear). Most of it is is a package deal with some changes I have looked into:

HydroLabs 1.2M X 1.2M X 1.8M TENT (- 'General Consensus' solid well built and designed tents.)
600W MAXIBRIGHT COMPACT BALLAST
600W SUNMASTER DUAL SPECTRUM BULB (- Sunmaster seem well rated)
5" CoolTube Reflector (- Friends mentioned heating being an issue in all of their tents and reading up on it this seemed like a good choice to help reduce heating, allow the bulb to be closer to the plants without damage and negating the loss of lumens? It is replacing a Maxibright Reflector)
PLUG AND GROW LIGHT HANGERS
5"/300 RHINO PRO CARBON FILTER (- Rhino seems well respected and an improvement over most cheaper filters)
5" RVK A1 INLINE FAN
10M 5" ALUMINIUM DUCTING (- Originally 5m but asked for extra based on friend recommendation)
3X 5" JUBILEE CLIPS
1PK HEAVY DUTY ROPER RATCHETS
MIN/MAX HYGROMETER
PH TEST KIT (will order Ph up and down seperately as well as a PH meter)
PLUG + GROW HEAVY DUTY 13AMP TIMER
MEASURING JUG 1L (will order some seperate mixed sizes to make it easier)
5 X 30LTR ROUND POTS (- Deal was with 4 but going with 5 seeds - Please note the Soil and nutrients are part of the deal and I have asked the store if I need more (I haven't looked into the measurement part of soil yet!)).
5 X 37CM ROUND SAUCERS (Balls - realised writing this I had only asked to up the pots, forgot about the saucers)
3 X 50LTR CANNA TERRA SOIL (- Beginner here! Soil is most forgiving from what I can tell. Auto's apparently like Coco/Perlite but for simplicity on the first grow decided on soil. The Canna products are part of the kit but I found generally good opinions and for simplicity, just the 2. Again these are based on a 4 pot deal so I may need more?)
CANNA TERRA VEGA 1L (May need more?)
CANNA TERRA FLORES 1L (May need more?)

How does this look? Any glaring errors or things I should be really concerned with? I will order a couple of clip on 5" fans seperately and also have a larger 10" desk fan I can use if necessary. I went for 1.2x1.2 because it seems floorspace is a premium, I only want to try with 5 and will appreciate the extra space to move in to make things go as smoothly as possible I think. The tent will be situated in a fairly vacant 14 foot by 10 foot room with 2 windows but about 3-5 feet from a radiator so hopefully I can help the temperate humidity along a bit if needed with a combo of windows open/closed, radiator on/off etc

As for the actual growing part. Again I have looked, watched many videos and listened so I hope I have most of it right (and particularly for autoflowers). This is only a rough guide for myself and I am keeping it updated but any input welcomed.

1. Get tent and everything up and running and leave running for a good few hours (have been told 24?) to allow the air to clear and the tent to settle etc and also make sure everything works as intended.
2. Fill pots with soil and soak with water, enough so the pot is soaked all the way through. Push a 1cm hole into the middle of the soil and drop the seed in then 'brush' soil over the top, cover with clingfilm. Place under light which should be on a lower wattage or further away at this stage. 24/0.
3. Once seeds have sprouted, remove cling film. Do not water for roughly 10 days (and up light to full wattage between 7-10?). Then water roughly every 3 days? Doing finger test to see if damp, although not sure on amount of water for this kind of watering? Switch to 20/4 at this point.
4. Around 2-3 weeks in can start adding the Vega nutrient with the water (all ph tested). Around 4 weeks in (think this is when you notice they are not gaining anymore height?) start with the Flores Nutrient whilst also tucking leaves under flowering stalks to allow for most sun exposure. Due to the CoolTube I should be able to lower the light quite close to make sure they are getting the maximum amount of lumens - but still to be careful nothing is being burnt. I have read to use around half the reommended nutrients to see how the plants handle it and gradually build it up?
5. Around week 8-9 they should be looking good and filling out and should start flushing them with just pH tested water for around 10 days.
6. Around week 10ish they should be ready to be cut, trimmed, dried (7-10 days) and then cured (7+ days - It seems as if there isn't much of a top limit for this).
7. Enjoy?

The nutrient measurements etc I believe will depend on the provided bottles measurements but should be scaled down accordingly at least to begin with.

So any major issues or mess-ups. I know throughout I need to keeping an eye on the temperatures and humidity to keep them within optimal levels.

Any help appreciated!

My thoughts:

1. Autoflowers aren't the best choice for a new grower because they don't afford the opportunity to recover from mistakes. (They're on a fixed timetable once they sprout.). Having said that, my first harvest was an autoflower and I ended up liking autos a lot. But, they're costly (30% more electricity on lights, cooling).

2. IMO the cannabis-specific nutrients are unnecessary. All you need is an NPK ratio around 1.5-1-1.7 in veg, 1-1.5-1.7 in mid flower (go to P=2 by the end, if you want). Any nutrients will do that. I use Grow More Sea Grow. 5lbs for $25. It has some organic compoents and I supplement with things like fish emulsion (to boost N in veg). Myself and friends notice a taste difference. Many experienced growers use J.R. Peters Jacks Classic (similar price).

I think most (all?) the cannabis-specific "boutique" nutrients are scammy or predatory. I think we pay for the theme. But, I could be wrong about some.

3. In soil you shouldn't have to ph your nutrients. Add dolomite lime (1 to 1.5 Tbsp per gallon of soil). But, starting out a ph pen can relieve concerns. (The problem I had phing is that the ph-up adds more salts to the nutrients, leading to more salt buildup whch is the real source of soil ph problems. It cascades like that. The ph problem leads to a Ca Mg def, leading to calls for calmag products, adding more salts, acidifying the nutrient mix, requiring more phup, adding more salts.... Soil isn't that complicated.).

4. An EC meter is useful. Monitor your runoff EC and that will tell you if you're over feeding and/or not producing enough runoff (I like 20-30% runoff). For me, when it goes over EC 4 (2000ppms) I'm in the danger zone for nutrient lockout. If it reaches EC 5 (2500ppms) I have lockout (and acidic soil below 5.4). I like to see around 1600-1800 ppm in flower (3.2-3.6 EC).

It's just a convenient way to have some info available to you if a problem arises. It helps you know if you're overfeeding or not getting enough runoff to clear out unused nutes, and take a step back before it gets too bad (or know what's causing it if it gets bad). It's also useful if you play with other nutrients and aren't sure how much to use.

5. Check out CMH bulbs for your HID. Some people who are into more efficient LED lights prefer these over HPS.


They run cooler, fewer watts per sq/ft.

tl:dr az2000 knows his shit!^ what he said^

Thank you for the advice, much appreciated. I was recommended autoflowers by a friend as he started with them and got suitable results for his requirements which are similar to mine. Although I do understand there is less time if things go wrong but I will be checking every day and will have this place to help if something goes wrong!

I will buy the EC meter as you suggested. I believe as i'm not from the US some of the nutrients etc you mentioned are not as readily available but I will look into them to seem if something cheaper/more basic is available locally or online for a cheap price.

I had difficulty with the CMH bulbs you mentioned over here (but I have learned everything about this over the last 3 days so a lot of little bits of info need to be filled in so may be missing something) as well but am very curious about LED. The difficulty seems to be finding a generally well received one at a decent price and with a few more light height movements being involved during the grow itself but any extra expense (as long as not astronomical) seems to pay for itself after the 1st/2nd grow in saved electricity.

I have been using cannabis for 10 years and have had people at various stages telling me I should grow etc but now I have decided I don't mind investing slightly more at the beginning to avoid replacing things later on, and neatness is a big factor for me. I like the once and done approach although I understand it can be addictive! All the help is greatfully received and any more is welcome

Thanks again.

Lol Jacks Classic....Believe me @r1chuk you'll be much happier using your Canna...For some reason on here a lot of people hate the best nutrients or should I say cannabis specific nutrients such as Canna, Advanced Nutrients ect.....But once you're a very experienced grower you could use almost anything and grow exceptional bud....But I always suggest Canna, Advanced Nutrients or Botanicare to new growers it makes things a lot easier.

r1chuk said:

am very curious about LED.

Click to expand...

LED is a confusing topic. Unless you need to save money on energy, reduce heat signatures or fight heat in a hot climate (as I do) I would stay with CMH for tall growsw, T5HO in short spaces.

The inexpensive LEDs found on ebay aren't more efficient than the items above, and are throwaway. Worse, there are rebranded versions of those lights sold at a premium (Kind, Lush, HydroGrowLED, BlackDog, GrowBlu. If they don't say what diodes they use, there's a reason. And, don't fall for "about" pages where they mention quality diodes in science-like comparisons -- but don't actually say they use those diodes. HGL did that.). The indoor->LED forum is where you'll want to go when you're curious.

I agree with @Enigmatic Ways . The boutique mystery "lineups" can be easier for a new grower. Just mix the bottles according to a supplied schedule. That's what I did when I started. I used GH Flora 3-part. But, if you go with a mystery "lineup" use that spreadsheet I linked to and understand your NPK ratios so at least you'll know what you're doing and can experiment with the ratios (or recreating them with other products).

Aside from the price of cannabis-specific products, I don't like how the grower is kept ignorant of what they're actually feeding. It's like buying a proprietary product versus "plug-n-play." It's easy, but you get locked in because you don't know how it compares to other mystery multi-bottle products.

There is some benefit to chelated nutrients, quality control in manufacturing, etc. But, not enough to justify the price difference (IMO). I grow a plant for about $1 in nutrients (start to finish). At best, try both ways. But, be sure to at least keep track of the resulting NPK ratios of the mystery product so you have *knowledge* and can reuse it. (Don't just mix 2 parts A to 1 part B and know nothing more than that.).

Thanks for the input. I have ordered the kit. Went with a Sunlux 600w dual spectrum HPS simply as LED is way too fickle at the moment from more research and as you said above. Also, for a guaranteed good one rather than experimental, potentially good, a lot more than I am willing to pay.

I ended up switching the nutrients but to Plant Magic Old Timers, a lot of love for it on the UK based forums and turns out it is made fairly locally to me - so will support the little guy. I actually found a local recently opened Hydro shop that I thought I would have a look in and a chat with but being very cautious due to the stories you read on here and other forums. They seemed very knowledgeable and I got a 'start up' kit specced up and priced, then went home and googled each individual component to see the price difference, they weren''t pushy and I had indicated I had researched a fair bit. Only ended up coming to £35 more than buying it all individually online (which did surprise me) and the nutrients were actually cheaper than online, they will deliver to me discreetly and at my chosen time so I went with the local guys for some support. Only slight problem was with the tent, the only brands they did I recognised was Mammoth and Roof-Qube, they did do Green-Qube (which I would of happily gone with) but they only do the bigger ones of them and the Roof-Qube would deduct needed space. I went with a Mammoth Pro 1.2x1.2x2.0m due to reading that they actually bought the factory that Secret Jardin USED to make their tents in (and I have read a lot of negative about SJ raised in the last year or so due to moving factorys).

We did discuss the CMH bulb and he confirmed what I thought that they are very hard to get ahold of in the UK as my searching online proved. For my first grow the dual spectrum HPS with Adjustable Digital Ballast should be safe and easy and with the bulb being on of the cheaper things to replace I will go with the easier to obtain setup for now and as long as the plants don't smoke me by the end of it will look into seperates down the road.

Thanks again for the help guys. Am sure I will be posting more regularly on here as the weeks go by. Hopefully most of them won't start with the word 'Help!'.

r1chuk said:

We did discuss the CMH bulb and he confirmed what I thought that they are very hard to get ahold of in the UK as my searching online proved. For my first grow the dual spectrum HPS with Adjustable Digital Ballast should be safe and easy and with the bulb being on of the cheaper things to replace I will go with the easier to obtain setup for now and as long as the plants don't smoke me by the end of it will look into seperates down the road.

Click to expand...

We've been talking about CMH here. It's a confusing topic because there are All-start bulbs (which will run in ordinary magnetic ballasts, on MH setting I assume) and Elite Agro which require electronic/digital ballasts (and an "HPS retro" CMH bulb to run in an HPS ballast). If you read the whole thread (just a page or two) one guy says he runs his CMH All-start bulb on an HPS magnetic ballast. So, it sounds like you could order an All-start bulb online for about $50 US and use it in your system if the wattage matches.

Welcome to the hobby. You'll have fun. Be safe. Loose lips sink ships.